Category / BU Challenges

Some months ago, I signed up for all the Horizon 2020-related groups that I could find on LinkedIn. Most of the time, the notifications I receive are of passing interest or not directly relevant but one received this week took my attention – it was notifying group members of an upcoming e-discussion of gender in climate actions within Horizon 2020 funding. One thing lead to another and, within a few clicks, I was signing up to join GenPort (which is funded by the European Union FP7-SCIENCE-IN-SOCIETY-2012-1 programme):

GenPORT is a community sourced internet portal for sharing knowledge and inspiring collaborative action on gender and science.

A developing online community of practitioners, policy-makers and researchers is served by the GenPORT portal, and made up of organisations and individuals working across the globe for gender equality and excellence in science, technology and innovation. This covers all sciences – natural and social sciences, and humanities.

The GenPORT community and internet portal provide an arena for organisations and individuals to showcase and act as a gateway to a wealth of research resources, policy information, practical materials, and much more. Constantly evolving online information and services are shaped by the activities and contributions of community members. The portal aims to facilitate the exchange of experiences and to foster collaboration, and so to support continuing policy and practical interventions in pursuit of gender equality.

GenPORT offers…

Searchable resources and online documents on the topics of gender, science, technology and innovation

Information and support in the development of gender-sensitive research design, and gender-equal research structures and processes

The Board of Directors of World Leisure Organization (WLO) just welcomed Dr Lenia Marques as a member for the mandate 2016-2018.

“Founded in 1952, World Leisure, is a world-wide, non-governmental association of persons and organizations dedicated to discovering and fostering those conditions best permitting leisure to serve as a force for human growth, development and well-being.” (WLO, 2016)

Among different partners and collaborators, WLO has been working with universities, industry and international bodies, such as the United Nations.

One of the highlights of WLO forthcoming activities is the congress in Durban (South Africa), on which Dr Lenia Marques is member of the scientific committee. In this congress she will also present part of her ongoing research on online and offline leisure practices within events studies.

There are still opportunities for UG and PG students to participate both in the congress (speakers, posters or volunteers) and in the international fieldschool in Durban (24 June – 2 July 2016). This is a very exciting opportunity for students, in particular in the areas of Leisure, Events, Tourism, Sports and Recreation.

For more information on the WLO, the WLO congress or student opportunities, please contact Dr Lenia Marques, lmarques@bournemouth.ac.uk.

The European Commission has launched a Call for Ideas for a European Innovation Council to support Europe’s most promising innovators.

Commissioner Moedas launched the Call for ideas at the Science|Business Annual Conference in Brussels. He said that “Europe has excellent science, but we lack disruptive market-creating innovation. This is what is needed to turn our best ideas into new jobs, businesses and opportunities.” While the number of start-ups created in Europe is on a par with competitors such as the United States, Europe lags behind in disruptive innovation and in scaling start-ups into world-beating businesses. A European Innovation Council could contribute to solving this problem.

Does the thought of writing a research publication make you feel queasy?

Do publication targets bring you out in a cold sweat?

Are you sick of journal editors and referees?

Maybe our publication clinic can help! This event, facilitated by Professor Adrian Newton, is provided for anyone who has experienced difficulty in producing research publications or getting their manuscripts published. The idea is to provide a forum for discussing such challenges, in an informal and supportive environment. Please bring along your symptoms for diagnosis, or relevant case histories, so that we can explore potential remedies!

Title

Date

Time

Location

Research Publication Clinic

Wednesday 17 Feb 2016

12:00-13:30

Lansdowne Campus

To secure a place at this publication clinic, please email OD@bournemouth.ac.uk.

We’re seeking to come up with novel research which addresses one of the ‘grand challenges’ – how do we realise the transformational impact of digital technologies on aspects of community life, cultural experiences, future society and the economy?

So, who should attend?

The sandpit is open to everyone, and we do mean all BU staff and PhD students. You don’t need a track record in digital research, though we’d like you to consider attending if you do have. It doesn’t matter whether you have a research track record or not. We want anyone who thinks they might have something to contribute (and even those who think they don’t), and who is available all day on 26 January and during the morning of 27 January to come along.

What do I need to prepare in advance? What will the sandpit entail?

Absolutely nothing in advance. During the sandpit, you’ll be guided through a process which results in the development of research ideas. The process facilitates creativity, leading to innovative and interdisciplinary research ideas. These ideas will be explored with other attendees, and further developed based on the feedback received.

What if I don’t have time to think about ideas in advance?

You don’t need to. Some inspiring speakers with a range of backgrounds will be coming along to give you ideas…

What about afterwards? Do I need to go away and do loads of work?

Well… that depends! Tthe sandpit will result in some novel research ideas. Some of these may be progressed immediately, others might need more time to think about. You may find common ground with other attendees which you choose to take forward in other ways, such as writing a paper.

What if my topic area is really specific, such as health?

Your contribution will be very welcome! One of the main benefits of a sandpit event such as this, is to bring in individuals with a range of backgrounds and specialisms who are able to see things just that bit differently to one another.

So, is this just networking?

Definitely not, it is a facilitated session with the primary intention of developing innovative research ideas, which also enables the development of networks. It gives you the opportunity to come up with research ideas which you may develop over time, together with the chance to find common ground with academics from across BU.

So, how do I book onto this event?

To take part in this exciting opportunity, BU academic staff and PhD students should complete the Sandpit Application Form and return this to Dianne Goodman by Tuesday 12th of January – please note the deadline has been extended due to the festive break. Places are strictly limited.

By applying, you agree to attend for the full duration of the event – full day 26th January and half day 27th January.

Or, to put it another way, how do we realise the transformational impact of digital technologies on aspects of community life, cultural experiences, future society and the economy’?

On 26th and 27th January 2016, RKEO will be hosting a sandpit workshop to facilitate exploration of this topic to:

Raise awareness – interdisciplinary approaches are an integral element of research success

Provide a space to explore ideas

Provide a mechanism for continual peer review

Support proposal development

Stimulate research proposals in promising areas of research for the University

The Research Sandpit process comprises:

Defining the scope of the issue

Sharing understanding of the problem domain, and the expertise brought by the participants to the sandpit

Taking part in break-out sessions focused on the problem domain, using creative and innovative thinking techniques

Capturing the outputs in the form of a research project

To take part in this exciting opportunity, BU academic staff should complete the Sandpit Application Form and return this to Dianne Goodmanby Tuesday 12th of January – please note the deadline has been extended due to the festive break. Places are strictly limited.

By applying, you agree to attend for the full duration of the event – full day 26th January and half day 27th January.

Or, to put it another way, how do we realise the transformational impact of digital technologies on aspects of community life, cultural experiences, future society and the economy’?

On 26th and 27th January 2016, RKEO will be hosting a sandpit workshop to facilitate exploration of this topic to:

Raise awareness – interdisciplinary approaches are an integral element of research success

Provide a space to explore ideas

Provide a mechanism for continual peer review

Support proposal development

Stimulate research proposals in promising areas of research for the University

The Research Sandpit process comprises:

Defining the scope of the issue

Sharing understanding of the problem domain, and the expertise brought by the participants to the sandpit

Taking part in break-out sessions focused on the problem domain, using creative and innovative thinking techniques

Capturing the outputs in the form of a research project

To take part in this exciting opportunity, BU academic staff should complete the Sandpit Application Form and return this to Dianne Goodmanby Tuesday 12th January – please note the deadline has been extended due to the festive break. Places are strictly limited.

By applying, you agree to attend for the full duration of the event – full day 26th January and half day 27th January.

In the forward, Carlos Moedas, Commissioner for Research Science and Innovation European Commission, writes…

Foresight is an important tool to help us face the future with confidence, understand opportunities and risks, and help us develop our medium to long term strategies for research, science and innovation policy. It takes many guises: trends, signals, scenarios, visions, roadmaps and plans are all parts of the tool-box for looking to the future. In addition to these tools, using foresight requires an in-depth reflection on the policy implications and related scenarios.

This report ‘The Knowledge Future: intelligent policy choices for Europe 2050’ is an excellent example of such a reflection. Europe’s research, innovation and higher education systems are the foundation of our economic and social prospects, shaping our ability to tackle numerous challenges at both local and international level.

Globalisation, demographic changes and technological advances pose important challenges and opportunities for research and innovation in Europe. By reflecting on the trends and articulating scenarios, this report helps us think differently about European policies in the medium to long term.

In Europe we need to:

• Create the necessary conditions to capitalise on the results of research and innovation

• Boost excellence in cutting-edge, fundamental research

• Reinforce our international engagement through science diplomacy.

On this basis, I have set my priorities to be Open Innovation, Open Science, and Open to the World. I hope that this report will contribute to discussions on how research and innovation can contribute to a stronger economy and a better society for all.

Given the potential impact on the EU funding landscape, this report may prove to be essential reading for us all.

This month’s results*euincludes a number of live research projects that are of interest to researchers at BU. Keeping up to date with EU research can inform your research and suggest potential collaborators for future bidding development.

The main theme for this issue is tackling diabetes in Europe, including:

The European Research Council has a number of Implementing Arrangements (IAs). These arrangements provide opportunities in Europe for early-career scientists supported by non-European funding agencies to temporarily join a research team run by an ERC grantee. The purpose of the arrangements is to encourage, develop and facilitate such opportunities.

If you wish to apply for the next EU Academic Development Scheme (EUADS), your application must be with us by 30th November 2015. The previous blog post text is given again below, just in case you missed that announcement….The EU Academic Development Scheme (EUADS) is a unique scheme developed to kick start your career in EU research; it’s open to all BU academic staff seeking to gain EU funding. The EUADS will help you build up to submitting a proposal to any of the H2020 schemes by providing unlimited 1-2-1 support from an expert EU bid writer, group mentoring and unlimited assistance with writing your application over a 9 month period.The scheme involves four separate development workshops over nine months starting in January 2016 and ongoing assistance and support in developing EU proposals during that period. A useful budget of £1K per participant (with additional funds up to £2,250 in total) is provided to fund activities supporting bid development, such as:

• Travel with the intent of networking
• Conference attendance with the intent of networking
• Pilot research work
• Fieldwork
• Attendance at external networking events leading to collaborative research proposals
• Meetings with external organisations to establish collaborations
• Preparation of specialist material or data
• Replacement teaching

The workshops will all take place in 2016 on 13th January, 27th April, 20th July and 28th September. Application forms are available below and must include endorsement from your Faculty Deputy Dean for Research, who should be approached before beginning a submission. Places are limited and applications may be reviewed internally to decide on the final cohort; please complete the form with enthusiasm and care.

We are seeking individual applications but applicants may collaborate within and across Faculties and pool their individual budgets, where appropriate – please indicate in your application if you would like to be considered as a ‘team’ along with other applicants.

The deadline for applications is Monday, 30th November 2015. Applications and any questions should be submitted to the RKEO Funding Development Co-ordinator, Dianne Goodman.

The EU Academic Development Scheme (EUADS) is a unique scheme developed to kick start your career in EU research; it’s open to all BU academic staff seeking to gain EU funding. The EUADS will help you build up to submitting a proposal to any of the H2020 schemes by providing unlimited 1-2-1 support from an expert EU bid writer, group mentoring and unlimited assistance with writing your application over a 9 month period.The scheme involves four separate development workshops over nine months starting in January 2016 and ongoing assistance and support in developing EU proposals during that period. A useful budget of £1K per participant (with additional funds up to £2,250 in total) is provided to fund activities supporting bid development, such as:

• Travel with the intent of networking
• Conference attendance with the intent of networking
• Pilot research work
• Fieldwork
• Attendance at external networking events leading to collaborative research proposals
• Meetings with external organisations to establish collaborations
• Preparation of specialist material or data
• Replacement teaching

The workshops will all take place in 2016 on 13th January, 27th April, 20th July and 28th September. Application forms are available below and must include endorsement from your Faculty Deputy Dean for Research, who should be approached before beginning a submission. Places are limited and applications may be reviewed internally to decide on the final cohort; please complete the form with enthusiasm and care.

We are seeking individual applications but applicants may collaborate within and across Faculties and pool their individual budgets, where appropriate – please indicate in your application if you would like to be considered as a ‘team’ along with other applicants.

The deadline for applications is Monday, 30th November 2015. Applications and any questions should be submitted to the Funding Development Co-ordinator, Dianne Goodman, dgoodman@bournemouth.ac.uk

Look our for further posts on EUADS in the coming weeks

Ever heard of a hackathon? Nope, neither had I until a few weeks ago. Wikipedia reliably informs me that a hackathon is a “portmanteau of the words “hack” and “marathon”, where “hack” is used in the sense of exploratory programming”.

The challenge is to create an app that facilitates social change through sport at the Sport England Sport Technology Awards Hackathon. It will take place over 25 hours on 2-3 October 2015 during which time teams will have just 24 hours to develop their concept that will help a particular demographic group become more physically active.

The winning team will be awarded a bursary of £10,000 to help them build the app.

Our Team BU will be a collaborative effort across BU departments and services. We have five on our team so far:

Erika Borkoles, Sport and Exercise Psychologist from the Department of Sport and Physical Activity

Barry Squires, the Business and Partnerships Manager from SportBU

Chi Zhang a Postgraduate Researcher from Faculty of Science and Technology

Sarah Collard, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow from Faculty of Health and Social Sciences

Clare Farrance, Postgraduate Researcher from Faculty of Health and Social Sciences

Chi will be our star programmer with the rest of us supporting the conceptual and design elements.

We still have space for one more on our team. We’re particularly keen to find another programmer or anyone with skills in graphics design. Staff or students are welcome. If you’re interested please get in touch with Clare at: cfarrance@bournemouth.ac.uk

The UK is leading the way in number of applications submitted, but when based on per capita, the UK is 16th. Cyprus tops the per capita applications’ rate

Applications from countries outside the EU have reduced when compared with FP7, particularly those from China and Russia. The USA is still the main overseas applicant with rates very similar in Horizon 2020 and FP7

The average success rate is 14%

When it comes to success, although the UK has the highest number of applications, the UK is placed 10th, with an average success rate of around 15%. France is around 17%

Universities are submitting the most number of applications, followed by the private sector

Germany has increased its share of total Horizon 2020 funding against FP7. The UK share has dropped but is still ranked 2nd

SME participation has increased in Horizon 2020

Around 40% of applicants did not apply under FP7, with 80% of that being SMEs or industrial applicants – the remaining 20% of newcomers includes universities and other research organisation

Over half of the expert evaluators in Horizon 2020 had not participated previously

In the team of three psychology PGRs are Becca (2nd year), Anna and Simon (both 3rd years working hard on their theses). They have teamed up to race in the Bournemouth International Triathlon on 5th July doing the sprint distance: 750m Channel swim, 22k bike ride, and a 5k run between Bournemouth and Boscombe piers.

Becca, Anna and Simon are raising funds for Marie Curie UK, a charity that helps people affected by terminal illnesses.

Why are they doing it? Because they want to help; one night of nursing care costs an £160, which is a lot of money for those affected and needing support. Anna, one of the team members says: “My undergraduate lecturer died of cancer last year at the age of thirty six. Nurses and staff at a Marie Curie hospice had helped him tremendously during his struggle with the illness and he was always praising them for their dedication and all the work they did. If we can provide some comfort to others by our fundraising initiative, then this is all we want to do. We’ll do all the running anyway!”

The team has a very successful record of supporting Marie Curie UK and has taken part in Pandemonium Obstacle Race in 2014, raising an amazing £385 for the charity.

This year so far, team PhD has collected £335 via their Just Giving page and with two weeks until the race, there is still time to raise more! If you would like to sponsor Anna, Becca and Simon, please visit their Just Giving Page on: https://www.justgiving.com/Team-PhD/

Over the past month, Research Consulting has been undertaking a review of UK higher education institutions’ progress towards implementation of the open access policy for a post-2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF). Based on the six institutional workshops, completed with the support of the Jisc Open Access Good Practice Pathfinder projects, as well as interviews with Jisc and HEFCE staff, the study has identified how much progress has been made across the sector to implement the policy and distinguished where there may be further opportunities to support institutions in this area.

Summary Findings

The Collaborative Institutional Assessment of Open access (CIAO) tool was used to gauge institutions’ current level of readiness of the REF policy. Based on responses from 37 participating institutions, summarised below, the study found that, whilst all institutions were actively pursuing implementation of the REF open access policy, research-intensive institutions were generally found to have more developed open access capabilities than teaching-led institutions.

Key Challenges

Across all institution-types, however, the following key challenges were given high priority as potentially critically affecting the institution’s ability to comply with the policy:
• Difficulties in identifying accepted articles
• Difficulties in monitoring and benchmarking compliance
• Difficulties in tracking deposits in subject repositories
• Uncertainty over audit requirements, particularly in relation to exceptions
• Systems deficiencies which may result in significant compliance issues.

Other significant issues of note

• A tendency towards ‘gold-plating’ of processes and uncertainty over audit requirements which could be alleviated through reliance on institutional internal audit functions.
• The added value of self-archiving where articles are made OA through the gold route appears limited relative to the effort involved.
• The SHERPA/REF tool, in development, could save time and promote greater author engagement with the policy, if the results delivered were formally endorsed by HEFCE.

Resourcing also presented a further challenge for institutions, due to a rapid rise in deposits and potential inefficiencies in current processes. A large number of less significant issues were also raised, including difficulties in securing and identifying the AAM, uncertainties over dates of acceptance and publication, and concerns over staff recruitment and retention.

1. Jisc should review its arrangements for supporting institutional repositories, in view of the concerns identified over usability, required levels of technical support and uncertainty over how some specialist institutions can achieve compliance with the REF OA policy.
2. A comprehensive picture of the current research information system (CRIS) and repository solutions in use by UK HEIs, and the interactions between them, should be developed in order to effectively inform planning of Jisc projects and services.
3. Jisc should actively develop relationships with the major CRIS vendors, to ensure the sector’s requirements in respect of the REF OA policy are clearly understood and reflected in supplier roadmaps.
4. A working group should be convened to explore the role of subject repositories, and consider what opportunities exist to enable REF-compliant deposit in these repositories, with metadata subsequently shared with institutions.
5. Jisc should explore opportunities to collect and share relevant data on compliance with the REF OA policy, for example through further development of the CORE service.
6. The OA Pathfinder programme should take these recommendations into account, and seek to develop and disseminate good practice in the management of exceptions, among other areas.

Next steps

Jisc is committed to supporting the sector in their implementation of the policy and to focus its efforts and resource on those areas recommended by this study. Over the coming weeks, therefore, Jisc will be considering how its projects/ services can potentially be refocused/ reallocated to address the most urgent issues faced by institutions and will release details of these plans as soon as they become available.